With voting closing tomorrow, the race for the B&T Women in Media Awards, presented by Are Media, People’s Choice Award has entered its final stretch — with some serious last-minute movement.
After sitting in fifth place in our previous update, Simran Kaur from Pounce Agency has come storming in to take the number one spot with over nine per cent of all votes cast, pushing long-time frontrunner Christen Fernandes from Resolution Digital into third place.
Fernandes, who has led the race for much of the voting period, currently holds 5.2 per cent of all votes cast.
The other major mover is former Woman of the Year and founder of The Digital Picnic, Cherie Clonan, who has entered the Top 10 for the first time and immediately rocketed into second place — making her one of the biggest late contenders in this year’s People’s Choice race.
Further down the leaderboard, Esther Selvanayagam from Ogilvy remains firmly in contention in fourth place, while Scentre Group continues its strong showing with both Priska Raharjo and Annaliese Norsworthy holding spots inside the Top 10.
Rachael Webb from Sticki continues her climb up the rankings, moving into seventh place, while Ashleigh Schultz from News Australia has secured the final spot in the Top 10. Meanwhile, Kate Filippelis from Cartology has fallen out of the rankings as the competition tightens.
The latest standings are:
1. Simran Kaur, Pounce Agency
2. Cherie Clonan, The Digital Picnic
3. Christen Fernandes, Resolution Digital
4. Esther Selvanayagam, Ogilvy
5. Priska Raharjo, Scentre Group
6. Annaliese Norsworthy, Scentre Group
7. Rachael Webb, Sticki
8. Niamh Ryan, News Australia
9. Deepika Sondal, WPP Media
10. Ashleigh Schultz, News Australia
You can cast your vote in the form below or HERE.
With voting closing tomorrow, Friday 24 July, there is still time for another leaderboard shake-up. A final LinkedIn post, office email or group chat reminder could be the difference between staying on the list and making a last-minute leap.
The People’s Choice winner will be announced at the B&T Women in Media Awards, presented by Are Media, on Friday, 28 August at Sydney’s White Bay Cruise Terminal, alongside this year’s category winners.
If you want to be there when the winner is revealed, now’s the time to secure your tickets!
Key dates:
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- People’s Choice voting closes: Friday, 24 July 2026
- Early bird tickets end: Wednesday, 29 July 2026
- Finalists announced: Thursday, 30 July 2026
- Awards night: Friday, 28 August 2026
